Golden Eagles get great all-around performance, shutout Alabama State

Sep 04, 2009

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Nine different Golden Eagles had at
least one point Friday night as the Tennessee Tech soccer team
matched its all-time record for goals in a match, beating a
shorthanded Alabama State squad 7-0.

“Picking up our first victory was needed,” Tech head
coach Becky Fletcher said. “We’ve been right there, and
the girls put in the hard work and deserved to win.”

Freshman Andrea Meloff scored two goals on just two shots in the
match, and fellow freshmen Sarah Gawthrop and Kris Cambron also put
balls in the back of the net. Juniors Jen Hoffman, Brooke Mayo and
Michelle Decker also joined in on the scoring.

“We had some different positions scoring goals, it
didn’t just come from out front line, which is
exciting,” Fletcher said. “Nobody was playing selfish,
they were all passing the ball, and moving the ball
well.”

Cambron added an assist, along with freshman Julie Thompson, and
juniors Taren Brown and Kathryn Lally. Freshman Jacquie Watkins
finished the match with nine shots, including seven on goal.15
different Golden Eagles had at least one shot in the match.

The Golden Eagles were just one shot shy of tying their all-time
mark for shots in a match, finishing with 40 shots on Friday. With
Alabama State able to put just nine players on the field, the match
was stopped short in the 73rd minute.

Meanwhile, all 22 healthy Golden Eagles saw action for Tech,
including redshirt-freshman Krista Kaump. Kaump sat out the 2008
season with a medical-redshirt, and missed the first three games of
2009 with an injury before making her debut Friday. She finished
the match with four shots, including two on goal.

“Krista practiced all week, and we’re real excited to
get her on the field,” Fletcher said. “She has worked
so hard to get back, she’s been really patient and I know
it’s been frustrating for her at times. She came close to
scoring a couple times tonight and she got better every time she
stepped out on the field.”

Sophomore goalkeeper Kaitlyn Thacker and freshman Megan Polk split
the shutout. Thacker played the entire first half, and made two
saves, while Polk played the second half.

Alabama State goalkeeper Chelsea Nash had nine saves Friday, while
Veronique Lamontagne had five stops for the Hornets. All four of
ASU’s shots came from Monique Sylvester.

Tech improves to 1-3-0 in 2009, while ASU falls to 0-3-0.

The Golden Eagles will stay in the state of Alabama to take on
defending Southland Conference champion Texas State on a neutral
field in Birmingham, Ala. on Sunday. Texas State finished 13-4-4 in
2008. The Bobcats enter Sunday’s match at 1-3-0 in 2009. All
three of their losses have been by a one-goal margin.

“We definitely have a lot of respect for their
program,” Fletcher said. “They’ve accomplished a
lot of great things. I know that they are a very quality team. We
are going to have to come in and stay focused for the entire 90
minutes to be able to compete.”

The match kicks off at 11 a.m., and is hosted by former Ohio
Valley Conference member Samford. Fans can follow all of
Sunday’s action on Game Tracker by visiting samfordsports.com
and clicking the GT link on the events calendar.

The Golden Eagles will be on the road for the next two weekends
before returning home to open up OVC play against UT Martin on
Sept. 25. Admission to all home soccer matches is free.